Date: Fri, 2 Jun 2000 23:16:59 +0200 (MET DST)
From: Arun-Kumar Tripathi <tripathi-AT-statistik.uni-dortmund.de>
Subject: [Short report from Meta] ARE OUR SOULS LOST IN CYBERSPACE?  


Greetings,

((Hi, I --thought, this report might interest you. In the below
short report, *Spirituality* is discussed, as the report said, "The word
'spirituality' is surfacing again in American culture...." And, on 8th
of June 2000, a Conference on "Creativity, Spirituality and Computing
Technologies" will be taking place at Hyatt Sainte Claire, San Jose,
California. Thank you.--Arun))
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Date:    Thu, 1 Jun 2000 15:12:09 -0400
From:    by way of Billy Grassie <Sideane-AT-AOL.COM>
[--]

Please forward as appropriate.

We invite everyone to participate next Thursday, June 8th in San
Jose, CA as we kick off SSQ II.  Below is a story written by Thomas
Hargrove of the Scripps-Howard News Service about the San Jose Conference.

HEADLINE:  SOFTWARE PROVOKES HARD QUESTIONS;
ARE OUR SOULS LOST IN CYBERSPACE?

BYLINE: Thomas Hargrove Scripps Howard News Service

Ever worry that your personal computer is stealing your soul?
    
An eclectic group of computer engineers, academics and Internet experts
will assemble June 8 in San Jose, Calif., to discuss the effect technology
is having on spiritual development.
    
They will assess whether information technology is enhancing our lives,
or is bombarding us with useless or even harmful information and images.

"I used to pick up a good novel, but now I just surf the Web. The dark
side of technology is emerging," said Philip Clayton, professor of
philosophy at California State University-Sonoma and a project director at
the Center for Theology and the Natural Sciences at Berkeley, Calif.

"The word 'spirituality' is surfacing again in American culture. We
worry whether technology has run amok and are having recent discussions
about technology without limitations," Clayton said.
    
The conference - Creativity, Spirituality and Computing Technologies -
follows a similar gathering in 1998 that attracted hundreds of technology
experts concerned that computers may have little-understood benefits and
negative consequences for human development.

Bill Joy, co-founder and chief scientist at computer giant Sun
Microsystems, recently wrote that he fears computer-based genetic
engineering and robotics could produce harmful side effects for humans who
no longer control their own technology or understand its impact upon them.

Clayton said Joy's remarks have sparked a robust debate among computer
professionals.

"We are often told that technology is a neutral tool; like the atom, it
depends on how you harness it. But the issue of how humans live is not
morally neutral," he said.

The conference is scheduled to feature a diverse field of experts,
Including Stanford University computer scientist Donald Knuth,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology Artificial Intelligence Laboratory
adviser Anne Foerst; University of Pennsylvania artificial intelligence
researcher Mitch Marcus, and Mark Pesce, developer of three-dimensional-
display software commonly used on the Internet.

    Among the issues the conference is slated to address:

    -- How do computing and artificial intelligence research inform our
understanding of consciousness and cognition?

    -- How are the Internet and communication technologies reshaping human
relationships and societies?

    -- How can we connect technology development as a creative process and
computing research as a scientific process?

    -- How should our ethical and spiritual values guide the development and
deployment of new technologies?

    For more information, go to http://www.SSQ.net. Conference registration
can be completed online.
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